


(parentheses)

by pfaugh



Category: Free!
Genre: Canon Compliant, College, Enemies to Lovers, High ☆ Speed!, M/M, Post-Series, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-10-19
Updated: 2014-10-28
Packaged: 2018-02-21 17:32:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,456
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2476511
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pfaugh/pseuds/pfaugh
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's been a long time since Haruka Nanase had Sousuke Yamazaki over at his place. Sousuke proves time and again that he is the worst guest Haruka has ever had.</p><p>As they move forward, Haruka wonders if he'll ever be rid of Sousuke who seems to have found a new hobby in pushing his buttons.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Sousuke/Haruka probably makes the least sense out of any of the ships with the main boys, but I have a great love for it regardless. Saddened by the lack of fanworks for this pair, I decided to spit this out real quick. Intended to be a one-shot, but nah.
> 
> You kind of have to read High Speed 2 to really understand the significance behind this chapter. The particular scene referenced can be read here: http://janeypeixes.tumblr.com/post/94941754804/high-speed-2-chapter-8-light
> 
> I'll provide a summary of the scene at the end of the chapter if you're not interested in reading the full chapter.

It's been years since that day, but Haruka recalls it too clearly when he sees Sousuke Yamazaki sitting at the bottom of the shrine steps, his form no longer too lanky and awkward as it had been so long ago. He can see the hint of a shoulder brace under Sousuke's clothes, and he can feel Sousuke's sharp gaze turn to him.

They share a look, neutral meeting hostile. They're the sort of eyes Haruka has grown tired of seeing but accepts on his skin nonetheless.

He wonders for a moment whether he should walk by without a word, but Sousuke stands before he can decide. Sousuke stretches, a hand on his injured shoulder as he starts to walk up the stone steps, past the _torii_ and distinctly toward Haru's home.

With a sigh - _what a troublesome guy_ \- Haru follows after him, silent and always three steps behind. When they make it to his home, Sousuke throws open the door like he belongs there.

"Oi, don't just barge into people's houses-"

"Still keeping the door unlocked? You don't change, Nanase." Sousuke doesn't look back, doesn't acknowledge Haru's complaint as he lets himself in and seats himself at the tea table - the same spot from the last time he'd been here. He gives a quick glance around, looking as disinterested as always. "Seriously, have you changed anything at all? Do you still have those awful bamboo shoots and butterburs, too?"

Haru fights off another sigh as he toes off his shoes and leaves his bag in the entryway. He shrugs off his coat and hangs it neatly with his keys before grabbing his apron and heading into the kitchen.

He pulls the barley tea from the fridge and the necessary ingredients for croquettes, bamboo shoots, and butterburs. He might as well, if Sousuke's going to keep insisting that he hasn't changed.

_'Take a step! Forward!'_

Haru grabs extra bamboo shoots and butterburs before turning to the stove and beginning to work. While he's had his trip to Australia and had his shining moment with his friends at nationals, his last encounter with Sousuke still sours in his memory. Haru can never quite pin down their relationship with each other, but it's clear, especially recently, that Sousuke has little regard for Haru. And Haru is certainly not going to waste his time on a guy like that. It isn't as if, after all, he owes Sousuke his time just like he never owed him his swimming.

So _why_ is Sousuke _here?_

A quick glance back and he sees Sousuke spread on the floor, his arms tucked under his head and appearing asleep.

This time, he allows himself that sigh. But he works quickly, packing the patties together then coating them as needed. While the patties sizzle, he works on the bamboo shoots. He then heats the tea, preparing the cups and bringing them out to Sousuke first. Then, he returns with the croquettes, bamboo shoots, and butterburs, arranged artfully on the plate with a small bowl for the dipping sauce.

At the smell of food, Sousuke sits up, his eyes narrowing at the sight before him. "Are you mocking me?"

"Yes." Haru sits opposite and pours their tea. Sousuke mutters a curse and scoffs.

" _Itadakimasu._ " Despite his complaints, both past and present, Sousuke grabs his chopsticks and picks up the bamboo shoot, eats it as if throwing Haru's attempts to piss him off back in his face.

A bit annoyed, Haru begins his meal as well. He wishes he'd just made mackerel, and his stomach starves for it, but the croquettes feel right. In the silence as they ate, not even sparing a look toward each other, there was a tense but familiar atmosphere. It's almost calming, this sort of certainty. This is how they exist with each other, and that's fine with Haru.

"That was good. Thanks for the meal." Sousuke sets down his chopsticks and finishes off his tea, though Haru's still only on his second croquette. He supposes someone of that stature has to have a big appetite. Sousuke leans on the table, one leg propped up as he finally turns his eyes to Haru. "Better than the ones you fed me last time."

"What are you doing here, Yamazaki?" Haru frowns, pausing between bites. "I've made my step forward. Even if it isn't for Rin, are you still unsatisfied?"

Sousuke's expression darkens, but he keeps his gaze steady. "No."

Sousuke's hand goes to his injured shoulder, and Haru pretends not to notice, stays silent in his patience.

"I'm leaving- somewhere with the best doctor I can see." A weak smile shifts his demeanor to something much sadder, almost pitiable. But Haru knows better than to be so insulting. "I wanted to apologize."

"What?"

"Don't get me wrong- I still don't acknowledge you. That hasn't changed. I don't think it'll ever change." That hand squeezes his shoulder, and Sousuke winces. "But I won't leave with bad blood. You already know what I need from you - for Rin's sake. I don't need to repeat myself."

"You're apologizing but sticking by what you said anyway," Haru says calmly, drawing the lines between them clearly when they had been so murky and blurred before.

"Something like that."

"Is this Rin's doing?"

"No. He still doesn't know."

Haru takes another bite of his last croquette, wondering what Rin might think if he knew of the strange dynamic Sousuke and Haru had built between themselves. And how it all revolves around _him_. He wonders even more what it's like to have that sort of friendship, where both understood each other so well and yet kept parts of themselves so hidden away. Haru certainly doesn't tell Makoto _everything_ , but he almost never has to. Makoto instinctually understands and knows when to ask, knows when Haru lies.

But then again, Haru doesn't exactly tell Rin much of anything, either. 

"Don't-"

"What are you afraid of, Yamazaki?" Haru watches as Sousuke flinches. "If Rin knows- so what? Did it help, not telling him about your shoulder? What has hiding done for you?"

Defensiveness manifests in Sousuke's eyes, tenses in his muscles. "He doesn't need to know. Someone like Rin doesn't need that kind of worry weighing him down."

"Rin can take care of himself." Haru finishes off his tea, pours them both another cupful, ever the mindful host. "He said once that you were the one who understood him the most. I don't think that's true, if that's what you truly believe."

"You don't know anything." Sousuke stands with suddenness, his hand still braced against his shoulder as he fixes Haru a hard, familiar glare. "Thanks for the meal. I'll be leaving, now."

Haru nods, getting up as well to follow Sousuke out. Sousuke shoves his feet in his shoes, so silent and brooding, before he straightens and pauses, and the ice in his eyes melts to something softer. Remembrance, perhaps, of a memory not quite fond but not quite unimportant. His thick fingers pick at the keys hanging on the wall, isolating the small dolphin keychain, worn and tarnished from years of use.

"You still have something like this," he seems to say to no one in particular. "You really haven't changed a bit, Nanase."

Haru frowns. He's uncertain whether to be embarrassed or insulted or something in between. "What are you-"

"See you later-" Sousuke spares him a look, so curiously infuriating. "-Haru-chan."

Sousuke departs with a soft laugh, a hand waving once in farewell as Haru stares after him, frozen and dumb-founded.

He's going to kill Rin Matsuoka.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Summary of the High Speed 2 scene this chapter mirrors: Sometime after Rin moves away to Australia, Sousuke stops by Haruka's house to return a dolphin keychain that Haru happened to drop. Haru invites him in for croquettes - he also offers him bamboo shoots and butterburs. Sousuke is pretty surprised to learn that Haru made the bamboo shoots himself...then claims that he hates them. They actually have a pretty amiable conversation. Sousuke gives tells Haru about a letter Rin wrote, and gives Haru advice on a particular swimming technique that Haru later utilizes.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One year later, the same old shit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter has not been proofread by an independent party, so apologies for any mistakes I may have missed. Thank you to everyone who's stopped by to support my crazy thirst for this ship!

It's a year later when Haruka sees Sousuke again, sitting cross-legged in the middle of Haru's apartment in Tokyo, that icy gaze ambivalent to the way Haruka looks at him with confusion and disdain. Haru isn't sure if he prefers this to the contempt he's become used to over the years of their questionable acquaintanceship.

"No decorations… typical, Nanase." Sousuke grins, so easy in his posture like he doesn't see anything wrong with the situation.

_Again._

"If you tell me one more time how I haven't changed, Yamazaki, I'm kicking you out," Haru grumbles as he sits across from Sousuke at his table, much smaller and less adequate for company than the one he has in Iwatobi. He pulls out his books, turning the pages to some arbitrary location, a chapter his professor has yet to cover. He's already completed his school work, finished it prior to the recent international tournament including Australia, so he has nothing remaining to distract him from the very real and very baffling presence that is Sousuke Yamazaki.

"Maybe I'll take it back, then." Sousuke sounds amused - almost _grateful_ , and it pisses Haru off for reasons he has no interest in pursuing. Even as Sousuke spins condescension, colors his words with false politeness. Haru knows better than to give him the satisfaction of a reaction. "Thanks, Nanase, for letting me stay."

"I still don't see why I'm the one who has to put up with you." Haru jots down something incomprehensible onto his notebook, avoiding eye contact. And, well, he _does_ understand why he's stuck with Sousuke, all things considered. Rin's team's hotel rooms are already stuffed with fully-grown adult men of an entire swim team, and Makoto's apartment hardly had the room. But can't Sousuke get his own hotel room? Doesn't he have friends here from high school?

Sousuke rolls his eyes, and his usual demeanor around Haru returns, so different from this strange, almost _friendly_ side that only the Samezuka swim team seems to see. "Shouldn't I be the one complaining? Having to spend the night with someone as unpleasant as you."

"If I'm so unpleasant, maybe you should leave."

And, quick as before, that grin returns. "Does it bother you, Nanase?"

"Yes."

"Then I'm staying."

"What-" Haru bristles, a second away from tossing his book in that smug, _irritating_ face. He takes a deep breath as Sousuke chuckles, tries to think about how Makoto and Rin would scold him if he did such a thing to keep his impulses under control. "You're a pain."

Unaffected by the insult, Sousuke stands up and stretches, rotating his injured shoulder in a particular way. "A pain who's tired and wants to get some shuteye. Where am I sleeping?"

Haru cannot be more grateful that he has extra blankets and a futon due to Makoto's occasional visits. He normally doesn't care about that sort of thing, doesn't really understand why Rin throws such a fit every time at the suggestion of sharing beds. Well, here he doubts his reasons are the same as Rin's, but damn he'd rather sleep in the bathtub than in the same bed as Sousuke. "I've got a futon. You can-"

- _set it up._ Oh, right. The shoulder.

"I'll set it up in the bedroom."

It isn't like he's really working on anything, anyway. And after a busy day at the tournament and catching up with Rin, he's pretty tired as well. So he shoves his books aside, not catching the sharp frown sent his way, and gets up to wander into his room. It's fairly small but with enough floor space for someone even as tall as Makoto and Sousuke. He pulls out the futon and spreads it out with ease, having done this many times before.

"I have something of Makoto's if you don't have any clothes to sleep in," Haru says with distinct disinterest.

"I have at least that much." Sousuke promptly pulls out his clothing and changes out of his t-shirt and jeans. Sousuke pauses after he shoves his discarded clothes into his backpack, not focused on any one thing in particular. There's something dark in his tone, an anger reminiscent to the day they reunited by the vending machine. "You know, I can still do things on my own. I don't need your help."

Ignoring him completely, Haruka moves past Sousuke into the bathroom to prepare for the evening. He brushes his teeth and washes his face before starting his bath. He doesn't look up when he senses Sousuke in the doorway, Sousuke who seems intent on continuing the discussion with all the intimidation he can muster.

"Don't pity me."

Haru strips off his tracksuit and underwear without shame or consideration for Sousuke, having dressed in a locker room full of people he didn't particularly care for plenty of times. He drops his clothes in a nearby basket and tests the water's temperature before sinking in with a quiet sigh. Instantly, the worries and aggravations of the day melt into the water, and for once that night Haru looks truly at home. He almost - _almost_ \- forgets about Sousuke, but his demand still cling to the tiles.

Sousuke, also likely used to being in a locker room full of men in various states of undress, is unbothered by the sudden nudity and steps in closer to the tub to glare down at Haruka proper.

Haru meets his gaze evenly and cooly. "If you want a bath, you'll have to wait. The tub isn't big enough."

Sousuke nearly _snarls._ "Stop playing around!"

An irritated sigh flutters across the surface of the water. Haru's eyebrows knit with annoyance. He answers frankly, like he doesn't have the time or patience to sugar-coat and lie for Sousuke's sake. "I don't pity you."

"Then why." The bite of his words seem to have little effect on Haru who only appears at most mildly ruffled - and only because Sousuke's interrupting his precious bath time. 

"You're a guest." Haru shrugs, as if it's really that simple.

 _Not a friend_ is the implication, and Sousuke doesn't fail to catch it. Neither does he let it bother him. It's true, after all. Instead, he laughs bitterly. He's not sure whether to believe Haruka or not. Haru's a lot of infuriating things, but a liar isn't among them. "That's your excuse?"

"Think whatever you want. I'm not here to pamper your ego." Haru slides down into the water until it hits his chin, content as the heat of it wraps around him comfortingly. "Anything else?"

There's a moment of silence, tense and thick before Sousuke smirks and the bright teal of his eyes dull to something softer. _Teasing_. It's a startling contrast from the deep-set frown and sharp look he'd had only moments before, and Haru's already suspicious. Sousuke's gaze darts to the bath water, so clear and revealing and Haru feels-- strange. Not quite self-conscious but not quite comfortable. "Yeah. Not too bad-- _Haru-chan._ "

As Sousuke finally leaves the bathroom and settles into bed, Haru dunks his head under water and a stream of angry bubbles break the surface to replace the angry shout he's so tempted to release.


End file.
